TECooler's Thermoelectric Technical Reference Guide is a comprehensive technical explanation of thermoelectrics and thermoelectric technology.

Applications for Thermoelectric Coolers

1 Applications for thermoelectric modules cover a wide spectrum of product areas. These include equipment used by military, medical, industrial, consumer, scientific/laboratory, and telecommunications organizations. Uses range from simple food and beverage coolers for an afternoon picnic to extremely sophisticated temperature control systems in missiles and space vehicles.

Unlike a simple heat sink, a thermoelectric cooler permits lowering the temperature of an object below ambient as well as stabilizing the temperature of objects which are subject to widely varying ambient conditions. A thermoelectric cooler is an active cooling module whereas a heat sink provides only passive cooling.

Thermoelectric coolers generally may be considered for applications that require heat removal ranging from milliwatts up to several thousand watts. Most single-stage TE coolers, including both high and low current modules, are capable of pumping a maximum of 3 to 6 watts per square centimeter (20 to 40 watts per square inch) of module surface area. Multiple modules mounted thermally in parallel may be used to increase total heat pump performance. Large thermoelectric systems in the kilowatt range have been built in the past for specialized applications such as cooling within submarines and railroad cars. Systems of this magnitude are now proving quite valuable in applications such as semiconductor manufacturing lines.

2 Typical applications for thermoelectric modules include:

Avionics

Black Box Cooling

Calorimeters

CCD (Charged Couple Devices)

CID (Charge Induced Devices)

Cold Chambers

Cold Plates

Compact Heat Exchangers

Constant Temperature Baths

Dehumidifiers

Dew Point Hygrometers

Electronics Package Cooling

Electrophoresis Cell Coolers

Environmental Analyzers

Heat Density Measurement

Ice Point References

Immersion Coolers

Integrated Circuit Cooling

Inertial Guidance Systems

Infrared Calibration Sources and Black Body References

Infrared Detectors

Infrared Seeking Missiles

Laser Collimators

Laser Diode Coolers

Long Lasting Cooling Devices

Low Noise Amplifiers

Microprocessor Cooling

Microtome Stage Coolers

NEMA Enclosures

Night Vision Equipment

Osmometers

Parametric Amplifiers

Photomultiplier Tube Housing

Power Generators (small)

Precision Device Cooling (Lasers and Microprocessors)

Refrigerators and on-board refrigeration systems (Aircraft, Automobile, Boat, Hotel, Insulin, Portable/Picnic, Pharmaceutical, RV)

Restaurant Portion Dispenser

Self-Scanned Arrays Systems

Semiconductor Wafer Probes

Stir Coolers

Thermal Viewers and Weapons Sights

Thermal Cycling Devices (DNA and Blood Analyzers)

Thermostat Calibrating Baths

Tissue Preparation and Storage

Vidicon Tube Coolers

Wafer Thermal Characterization

Water and Beverage Coolers

Wet Process Temperature Controller

Wine Cabinets